As you both know I have a friend who has a brain tumour in his frontal lobe. He had a couple of biopsies, radiotherapy/chemo, none of which appear to have been successful. They’re keeping him on chemo tablets for a week per month at the moment, and have taken him off steroids.

Apparently his hospital consultant has now told him that he’s looking at 12-15 months until he should expect to die. Sort of strange because apparently it’s not exactly normal for them to give a death sentence under these circumstances. But I shan’t question it because I guess these guys know best, and his consultant has always been brutally honest with him.

I hope you don’t mind me contacting you both, I know this isn’t your field at all, but I just wanted to put feelers out somewhere, anywhere, within the medical profession.

Firstly, he said that he wanted to get a second opinion on the MRI scan he’d been given. I think he’s been to a local hospital so far – somewhere local to Ickenham. However, he has no idea where to even begin to go or to where to ask for this second opinion.

Secondly, let’s assume that the scan was accurate. Until now, he’s had his head in the sand so has not questioned anything, looked into alternative treatments, new developments or anything of the like.

So really what I am asking of you both is to try to help out with any advice you can think of whatsoever about where he may be able to go to in order to get advice/help outside of what he’s already been told by these local people.

Rishi - I know that loads of your mates are doctors – if you think any of them may know, or even know someone who knows anything, can you please pick up the phone to them for me to see if they can offer any advice? Gaz – I realise that you’re in psychology which is an entirely different ballpark, but I’m assuming that you may have some medical friends too, or some colleagues who may know someone who knows someone.

His ex-girlfriend/very good friend recently came into some inheritance money (Clayton has none so it’s been NHS all the way). On Saturday she told me that she’d be prepared to pay for him to have whatever is necessary to help/get rid of it. But of course both of us are clueless about medical developments – e.g. are there any pioneering methods happening overseas at all?

If you can’t think of anyone, I totally understand, but please keep it in your mind for those random chats in the pub or whatever, and let me know if anything pops up.

Thanks both.

xxx

Inam: I have copied you in because I know your dad is a doctor and you just seem to know people everywhere!